How Anxiety Affects the Body
While anxiety has a direct impact on our mental well-being, it also can be detrimental to physical health. In reaction to physical or mental fear, the brain sends signals to the central nervous system to activate an acute stress response—commonly known as the fight-or-flight response. If this response is activated continuously, with no apparent cause or over a minor inconvenience, the body gradually wears down.
Here are some common physical manifestations of the anxiety response.
Release of Hormones
When stress, fear, or anxiety activates the fight-or-flight response, the body prepares for either staying to fight the stressor or fleeing. It releases increased levels of cortisol, adrenaline, and other hormones. In small doses and when necessary, these hormones can give us our best chance at survival, but when they are produced over a long period of time, problems with the cardiovascular, digestive, immune, respiratory, and central nervous systems can occur.
Dizziness and Shaking
During acute stress, blood rushes to the parts of the body that may need it most for fight or flight, such as the heart and extremities. The rapid blood flow can cause a person to feel light-headed, dizzy, unsteady, or faint, as well as experience a tingling sensation or numbness. The surge of hormones through the body can also cause uncontrollable trembling, fidgeting, or overall restlessness, even in typically calm or manageable situations.
Hyperventilation
One of the most immediately noticeable physical symptoms of anxiety is shallow, rapid breathing. This is a defensive response to a stressful situation. The short breaths allow the lungs to take in more oxygen and spread it quickly to the body parts that need it most. However, this can cause a person to feel as if they are not getting enough oxygen or are having trouble breathing, which can lead to further anxiety. The changes in breathing caused by anxiety can even contribute to asthma symptoms, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.
Muscle Tension and Migraines
Muscles tense as a preventative measure to withstand stress and avoid injury. Prolonged periods of muscle tension can lead to aches, pain, knots, and tightness. People with anxiety commonly report feeling pain in their neck, back, shoulders, and jaw muscles. Teeth grinding and restless fidgeting have also been reported. Additionally, a 2017 study in the Journal of Head and Pain noted a strong link between anxiety, including excessive and an inability to relax, and migraine headaches. Other studies have found that people with migraines were two to ten times as likely to have a mood or anxiety disorder as those without migraines.
Increased Heart Rate
The heart will automatically start pumping more quickly when the body starts diverting blood and oxygen to the muscles it thinks will most benefit in a stressful situation. This can cause heart palpitations and chest pain and can increase the risk of high blood pressure and heart disease. Prolonged heightened blood pressure can lead to heart, brain, and kidney damage if left untreated. Studies at Harvard Medical School and the Lown Cardiovascular Research Foundation, as well as several Canadian medical colleges, have found that people with anxiety and established heart disease are twice as likely to experience a heart attack.
Repressed Immune System
In brief spurts of regular stress, the immune system gets a temporary boost of increased efficacy. With repeated or chronic bouts of anxiety, however, the immune system can be suppressed, causing a higher likelihood of catching colds, the flu, and other viral infections. This also triggers excessive cortisol levels, which prevents anti-inflammatory responses and the natural immune response to fight infection.
Trouble Sleeping
A good night’s sleep is necessary for regular day-to-day functioning. Anxiety over an upcoming test, meeting, or other stressful event can make falling asleep, staying asleep, or getting restful sleep difficult. Over an extended period, feelings of anxiety or panic can arise over the thought of not being able to sleep at night. This goes on and on in a cycle of insomnia caused by anxiety that is caused by insomnia. A study from the department of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, found that high instances of mood and anxiety disorders combined with severe insomnia impaired the subjects’ ability to think, function socially, provide a high quality of work—or even show up to work at all.
Excess Blood Sugar and Weight Gain
When hormones such as cortisol and epinephrine are released into the body in reaction to stress, the liver produces more glucose for energy, which increases blood sugar. In the short term, the body reabsorbs the excess sugar, but when blood sugar is elevated over time, the risk of predisposed individuals developing type 2 diabetes increases. Anxiety can also increase cravings for “comfort foods,” including those that are high in calories, fat, and/or sugar, such as ice cream, chocolate or French fries, which may cause the brain to produce more serotonin but can results in increased storage of fat in the body and weight gain.
Profuse Sweating
The human body has two types of sweat glands, eccrine and apocrine, which are located all over the body. When feelings of anxiety activate the sympathetic nervous system, these sweat glands go into overdrive, leading to excessive perspiration. When blood travels to the muscles, the blood vessels constrict in order to divert oxygen. Constricted blood vessels cause an increase in body temperature, which then triggers the sweat glands in an attempt the cool the body.
Gastrointestinal Distress
The body can generally figure out which functions to prioritize in each situation. However, chronic anxiety can interfere with these self-regulating processes. The anxiety response blocks digestion and relaxes stomach muscles, causing nausea, diarrhea, and stomach pain, as well as an increased need to urinate or a loss of control over urination. People with anxiety can also experience a loss of appetite and have an increased risk of ulcers, heartburn, or acid reflux. Evolving research has shown that there is direct communication between the brain and intestines, in what is referred to as the “gut-brain axis.” This connection causes sufferers of digestive issues to experience higher levels of stress related to serotonin and serotonin transporters and causes people with anxiety disorders to have a higher likelihood of developing digestive diseases such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS0 and functional dyspepsia (FD).
Source: Health Magazine
These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. This is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease.